Which to use
“chases” is a noun and “curses” is an intj - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #21,745
- “chases” frequency rank
- #21,484
- “curses” frequency rank
- 43229
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | chases | curses |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | plural of chase | Expression of annoyance or frustration. |
Where the eye mixes chases and curses
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses chases with curses
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: chases is /ˈt͡ʃeɪsɪz/ while curses is /ˈkɝsɪz/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs intj), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 43229, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
chases is recorded at frequency rank #21,745, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈt͡ʃeɪsɪz/. curses is at rank #21,484, tagged as anintj, pronounced /ˈkɝsɪz/.
Glosses for this pair are partially populated in our dataset, but the full side-by-side definitions above should still guide you to the right choice.
With a confusion score of 43229, this pair ranks #241,989 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of chases vs curses
Shared letters: ces. Private to "chases": ah. Private to "curses": ru.
"chases" · 6 letters · shape CCVCVC · "curses" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "chases" for "curses" ever safe?
Frequency check: "chases" vs "curses" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "chases" and "curses" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "chases" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "curses" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #241,989 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "chases" and "curses" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "cates vs chases". Nearby pair
- Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes
Confusion rank #241,989 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.